This Moment
by Janice MacLean
They wait.
They visit the Temple.
They do their routine, day in and day out.
So, when an ordinary couple
with a tiny baby in her arms
and the meagre sacrifice of two turtledoves in his hands
come in
they see
they know.
They hold the moment in their hands.
Perhaps it was an angel’s whisper that tipped them off.
Perhaps it was a strange premonition that prepared them.
It could be.
Or perhaps it was their daily attentiveness that made them ready.
Perhaps it was the long suffering that plied their hearts
in a rhythmic softening
and between heartbeats a tender moment fell.
Perhaps it was their diligent seeking
that readied aged eyes to see the sacred in the ordinary.
Perhaps it was a moment just like every other.
Yet in that moment,
they saw
they knew.
They held the moment in their hands.
Practice
Place your attention to one of your hands. Concentrate your attention until you feel your hand filling with awareness. Feel the sensation energy, faint at the beginning, become gradually stronger, firmer, deeper.
Now go about a simple daily activity while keeping your attention on your hand. Notice what happens as your do something ordinary while keeping your attention on your hand. Let this be your practice today, returning your attention to your hand whenever you have routine tasks to do.
You are learning to sense your experience. You are learning to know with more of your whole self. You are learning to keep your attention in yourself.
It is practice like this that helps us learn sense the holy in the ordinary.
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